Many organizations utilize an enterprise resource management system to manage information about their business. Enterprise resource management systems typically comprise very complex sets of relational databases. Access to the data stored in the databases is tightly controlled in order to maintain referential integrity among the database tables. The complexity of such systems makes it difficult for less technical users to access the information stored in the database.
Many software providers provide APIs (application programming interfaces) that allow authorized users or programs to access data contained in a database. APIs may be provided for particular functions. For example, an API called “add_new_customer” may provide fields for all customer data, which may be stored in multiple tables. The API may execute an attempt to add a new customer but it may not be successful if, for example, required information is not provided. In this way, the API helps to simplify and manage data access, and transactions may only be committed to the database if they satisfy database requirements.
One example of a complex database structure is Oracle E-Business Suite, which is a collection of enterprise resource planning (ERP), customer relationship management (CRM), and supply-chain management (SCM) applications that utilize Oracle's relational database management technology. Oracle also provides a number of APIs for allowing data to be requested from the database or added to the database in particular formats.
Software applications, such as ERP applications, typically provide standard forms for accessing information. However, these forms can be confusing and difficult to work with. As a result, organizations and end-users often create customized applications that utilize APIs to provide a user-friendly way to access the database information. However, creating and maintaining these applications can be expensive and difficult.
Therefore, it would be beneficial to have a superior system and method for working with APIs.